| Colorful
English! |
| Word or Phrase: |
Part of Speech: |
Idiom or General?: |
Usage? |
Restricted? |
| greenhorn |
noun |
idiomatic |
fairly common |
No |
Meaning: |
| an innocent, unrefined person, usually a newcomer to a
company, group or country, unused to the local manners and customs
|
Example(s): |
| I hear the company will be getting several greenhorns in next month. I wonder who will have to
break them in? |
Note: This comes from the idea of a young animal with
new horns.
Often when referring to such a person, we usually just say
that he or she is green. |